Curiosity
by xxTheDoctorDonnaxx
Summary: A regular Potions class goes terribly wrong, leaving Harry and Draco focused on only one thing-learning about each other.
1. Chapter 1

Hello! This is my first fanfiction ever, so if you're going to hate on me make it constructive. Reviews are appreciated and I'll take suggestions into account for future chapters;)

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. If I did, I'd do very naughty things to him, but I don't. J.K. Rowling does.

Curiosity

Chapter 1: Disaster

Draco glanced up briefly from his almost-finished homework as he heard the chaotic sounds of the group of Gryffindors trooping into the Potions room. His eyes skimmed haughtily over the laughing group, noting that Weasley's crooked grin, the Mudblood's bushy hair, and Longbottom's bewildered expression were pathetic as ever. Potter, the Chosen Prick or whatever he was called by his admirers these days, was sitting with his usual blank expression like he couldn't figure out what to do with himself after playing the war hero for so long. Draco sneered slightly and turned away, languidly finishing his Potions essay. It barely mattered; Snape would probably give him a good grade even if he saw Draco writing the entire thing in his classroom five minutes before the class started.

As if on cue, Snape swept into the classroom with his customary air of displeased boredom. He looked at the gaggle of Gryffindors with the slightest of smirks before telling the class "today you will be working on an especially complex and difficult potion. If you wish to earn your NEWTs, you have to be able to replicate difficult medicinal potions. You will be preparing Solidamentium Draught, a potion used to cure obsessive-compulsive behavior in wizards. You will be paired up-"he glanced at Potter and his group of fans, who had already begun shifting their desks around- "according to my choosing. Granger, you are with Parkinson. Weasley, Crabbe. Potter, Malfoy…" He continued pairing up all students, but Draco was busy glaring across the room at Potter. His expression was mirrored by Potter, who had a look of undisguised hatred flit across his face shocking in its intensity. Potty looked like he wanted nothing more than to strangle Draco, consequences be damned, but instead he grudgingly trudged across the floor and flopped next to Draco, leaning away as far as possible. 'Stupid fucking Potter' Draco thought to himself. 'Like he thinks I actually want to be paired up with an egocentric git like him'. Determined to make Potter squirm, however, Draco grinned broadly. "Hello, Potty" he said to the sullen Gryffindor. "Worried you won't do well without your pet Mudblood covering for you and pretending you actually have half a brain?" Disappointingly, Harry merely muttered "Shut up, Malfoy. Let's just finish this fucking potion so you can get the hell away from me". Malfoy decided to let it rest for a while, since he really wasn't looking forward to finding counterjinxes all night for when Potter finally snapped. He found the ingredients and began making the potion, leaving the raven-headed childish git to sulk.

Harry was very, very much NOT looking forward to this Potions lesson. Bad enough, with Snape breathing down his neck and waiting for him to make the slightest error. Working with Malfoy, the slimiest and most cowardly boy he'd ever met? Impossible. The blond looked his way as if he'd read Harry's thoughts, but Harry pointedly ignored him. There were a multitude of complicated steps for the potion and any one could go horribly wrong, ruining their entire day's work. He looked over at Malfoy expertly crushing the beetle wings and felt a tiny bit of relief that, although a disgusting and self-centered bitch, Malfoy at least knew what he was doing when it came to Potions. Harry quietly stirred the potion, sheepishly waiting for Malfoy to tell him what to do. Though he would hex every last person who would say it, Harry had to admit to himself that he really needed help with Potions class. This distasteful reminder that he would have to rely heavily on the Ferret made him want to puke, but he managed to keep his tongue and be relatively civil, even as the taunts grew more infuriating. They were almost done with the potion. If he could only hang on for a few more minutes he would be perfect, maybe even get full marks. Still, despite his manageable plan, the jibes were becoming quite personal.

"Does ickle Potty not want to talk today? Basilisk got your tongue? You know, I wonder how many professors would stop favoring you if they realized how fucking pathetic you are in class. Did you get your little Mudblood to Confund everyone into thinking you're special? Because you're not. You're just a little toad with ugly hair and parents who were either a blood traitors or a Mudblood. Oh, sorry, touchy subject-"

"Shut up, Malfoy" Harry said with a quiet threat in his voice. He glanced up sharply and met Malfoy's cold gaze. Both pairs of eyes widened slightly as steely grey met vibrant green, the depths of emotion contained within each at odds with the simple hatred shown on their faces. Then, as suddenly as the moment happened, it shattered and they quickly glanced away. 'What the fuck was that?' Harry thought. 'I don't understand Malfoy. One second he's insulting everyone I love, then the next he looks at me like he's a fucking real person with actual feelings. I just don't understand him, I don't get why he acts like a prick all the time, I don't know why he followed Voldemort and I just don't understand. Why the hell does Malfoy act so strange?"

'How the hell did Potter manage to seem all normal?' Thought Draco angrily to himself. 'He actually looked like there were thoughts somewhere in his empty scar head. Why does he never speak up? I know he does everything for the spotlight, I'm sure of it, he must totally get off on the hero worship, but he didn't seem happy! He looked like he was actually upset and confused, and I don't understand why he looks so empty all the time. I really don't understand that everlasting motherfuc-'

Then Longbottom bumped into the desk, tripped over a chair, nudged all of Draco's papers off of his table, and crashed into the cauldron. Hard. It teetered dangerously for a second before tipping forward and sloshing its boiling contents on a very surprised Draco and Potter. Then everything went very, very much to shit.


	2. Chapter 2

Since I forgot to in the first chapter, I'll give you a little more background into the story. It's Hogwarts, eighth year. Most people who are alive or dead in the books are alive or dead here (except Snape-I needed him for his personality, and a couple of others who I just slipped in to play minor roles.) Otherwise, it's the old gang back to finish another year of Hogwarts without Voldemort.

Sorry for the swearing, I was trying to write from the perspective of two teenage boys who happen to be enemies. Personally, I think I went very light on the language.

Reviews are love:) I can't fix it if I don't know what's wrong!

I don't own Harry Potter. Sadly.

Chapter 2: Grudging

Harry felt the room tilt dizzily as a searing pain across his chest combined with sharp stabs from his knees and he crashed to the ground. Beside him, he heard a loud yelp as Malfoy felt the same potion splash across his side, burning like acid. Harry could barely see hazy figures standing over him and shouting anxiously before the room faded to black.

Swimming back into consciousness, Harry felt a renewed burst of pain around his chest. He blearily opened his eyes to Madam Pomfrey's concerned expression. "Hello, Mr. Potter", she said slowly, as if he were dull. "You've just had a potions accident. Are you feeling alright?"

"I'm 'kay" Harry mumbled, surprised at how slurred his words were. A desk must have hit him in the head when he fell. "M'chest hurts tho. Where's Malfoy?" 'Why the fuck would I ask that?' he wondered incredulously. 'Who cares where the Ferret is, or how he's feeling, or if he hurt himself as well'- "Mr. Malfoy is fine." Madam Pomfrey said soothingly. "Professor McGonagall, would you care to explain for Mr. Potter the exact manner of his accident?"

"Certainly," Professor McGonagall said shortly. "Potter, your unfinished potion was Solidamentium, a draught that, when finished, has the power to cure OCD and other obsession disorders. However, when unfinished and in such a huge amount, the effect is essentially reversed. Ah, Mr. Malfoy, I see you are joining us." Harry glanced around blearily and saw Malfoy groggily sitting up. Madam Pomfrey rushed over to him and quickly filled him in on what McGonagall had just told Harry. "_Thanks, _Potter" Malfoy sneered. Even ashy and looking like he might throw up, Malfoy was still a prick.

"Screw you, Malfoy" Harry spat back, his sudden rage taking precedence over the ache in his chest, legs and head. "Maybe, if you hadn't spent the entire fucking time insulting my family we could have finished and packed up and nothing would have happened-"

"Really? Then maybe if you had actually worked for a single fucking minute of the class we could have finished without me pulling all of your dead weight all the time. Fault's all yours, Potter" Malfoy attempted a cocky grin, but it came off more as a grimace.

"No way! It's your fault, Malfoy"

"Fuck no!"

"Uh-huh!"

"Shut up, Potter-"

"Boys!" McGonagall interjected angrily. "We need to know exactly what you were thinking before the potion fell. Potter?"

Harry blushed slightly, grudgingly admitting "I, I was…curious. About Malfoy."

"I was wondering about Potter" Draco muttered, staring pointedly at the floor.

'Malfoy? Curious about me? Why would he do something like that? Also, why are his friends not here, that Parkinson girl is always slobbering over him, why have his parents not contacted him yet, and WHY THE FUCK AM I THINKING ABOUT MALFOY?' Harry thought angrily.

McGonagall smiled grimly. "Excellent. The fact that you were both pondering the same thing makes this somewhat easier. As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, this potion could cure OCD. But unfinished, the effect is to cause a fixation on the last thought you had before the potion fell. Congratulations, boys, I guess it's finally time you learned about each other."

"What? I don't want to have to learn about that idiot! What do you think, Potter?" Malfoy stopped, looking shocked at the words that had just come out of his mouth.

McGonagall looked amused, then continued in a sober tone of voice. "This accident has happened several times in the past by wizards who were trying to self-treat for OCD. This obsession will progress until normal conversations will be impossible. Like it or not, you will need to satisfy your curiosity of each other or risk permanent insanity. There are potions that will cure this malady-"Harry and Malfoy looked up with hopeful expressions "-but they need to brew under a full moon. Since the last full moon was less than a week ago, the potion will not be ready for about a month. There are other potions to help make the symptoms milder, but those take about a week to brew. Until then, you will have to spend a large amount of time together. I'll have Healer Elipsy describe how to help you work, but otherwise you will simply need to not ignore each other, or it will drive both of you mad."

Healer Elipsy stepped forward, smiling kindly. She was a short, rather round lady with a genial face and merry eyes. "Hello, boys. I must admit, you are in a rather unique situation. Since you were both thinking the same thing, we don't have to worry about the object of your obsession being impossible to meet. As you were feeling curiosity, I highly recommend you write out a list of questions you are willing to ask and have answered, or you will blurt out the first question that comes to mind. If the question you ask isn't answered honestly, that question will become increasingly painful for both of you, so it is imperative you truly respond to each other's inquiries. You, of course, will have new quarters in a special room together, since you may wake up in the night and need to have your curiosity satisfied. There are a few rooms usually reserved for married teachers-"

"We have to do WHAT? I am NOT sleeping with him!" The boys yelled simultaneously.

Healer Elipsy continued as if not interrupted. "You will also need to think carefully about questions to ask. Merely asking vague, unimportant details about each other will not satisfy your fixation for long. We don't know exactly what will happen to you if you ignore each other, but past experiences indicate it could lead to coma or even death. We're also not sure how far your curiosity will extend, if you only care about each other's personalities or if your obsession will extend to friend, early lives, sex lives-"

Harry and Malfoy stared at each other in abject horror. 'I really, really don't want to know about Malfoy's sex life' Harry thought disgustedly. Of course, now that he thought about it, he could not stop turning the idea of Malfoy having sex over in his mind. 'Is he a virgin? Is he even straight?' Questions began swirling in his head, feeling physically painful as he tried to ignore them. He looked over at Malfoy and saw him trembling, his pale face turned a frustrated shade of pink as he warred with questions of his own. As the pounding in his head reached fever pitch, Harry blurted out "Are you a virgin?" While Malfoy burst out with "Are you gay?" The boys quickly looked away from each other, Malfoy muttering "no" and Harry barely whispering "I don't fucking know, Malfoy."

Healer Elipsy's smile seemed strained, but she managed to keep a cheerful tone as she said "alright, boys. Questions like this will have to be normal for you while we wait for the cure to brew. Professor McGonagall will walk you to your new room. One more idea, it is possible that if you exhaust your supply of questions for each other your curiosity will abate naturally. So, I suggest you get right on that. Good luck, boys."

Harry stared across his bed at Malfoy, who mirrored his frightened and disgusted expression. Lucky him, he had to try to learn everything possible about Malfoy or risk dying. Already he could feel the ache of multitudes of questions dying to be blurted out. He took a shaky breath and met Malfoy's grey eyes. It was time to truly meet the Slytherin.


End file.
